Click to play videoMumbai: The entertainment industry may be recession-proof, but the advertising world sure isn't. With several leading brands deciding to drop big Bollywood stars from their list of endorsers, the stars are definitely beginning to feel the pinch now.
Shah Rukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Rani Mukerji and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan are some of the big names who have been shown thumbs down by brands they have endorsed for years. Are they too costly to have in a recessive market or are the brands simply looking to go for younger faces?
Pepsico had managed to rope in a 40 + Shah Rukh Khan - their most expensive brand ambassador - for their 'Youngistan' campaign, but then the company decided against renewing his contract with him, settling instead for new faces Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone.
"Yes I am no longer a Pepsi ambassador. I have been removed, they have thrown me out, I am without work now," quipped King Khan recently in an effort not to rake up a controversy.
Auto majors Hyundai and Toyota have also dropped him as well as Aamir Khan as their respective brand ambassadors. And though Coca Cola has retained Aamir as it's star endorser, it has dropped the other big name, Hrithik Roshan.
Nakshatra Jewellery has replaced Aishwarya Rai Bachchan with Katrina Kaif while both Fanta and Perk have taken on Genelia D'Souza instead of Rani Mukherji.
Ad filmmaker, Abhinay Deo says, "In recession, people are willing to experiment more because experimenting is obviously going to be cheaper for them. When a client experiments with a new brand ambassador who is a fresh face, it's a circle of life. Newer people come are welcome by the market, filmmakers plus their price tag is much better than paying a whole sum of money."
Looks like when everyone's trying to cut corners to survive the economic slowdown, expensive brand ambassadors easily become the first victims of the cash crunch.
(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter and Google+)
displayed with permission. Use of the CNN name and/or logo on or as part of CNN-IBN does not derogate from the intellectual property rights of Cable News Network in respect of them.